Foreign Companies Allowed to Issue Bonds

Foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam can issue bonds to mobilize capital for themselves although specifically the Law on Foreign Investment does not yet regulate this issuance, said Deputy Minister of Finance Le Thi Bang Tam.

 

Tam said that enterprises could do whatever the law does not ban.

 

At present, State-owned, joint stock and liability limited enterprises are allowed to issue bonds.

 

The Finance Ministry said that the country has released more than VND69 trillion (US$4.37 billion) worth of bonds so far.

 

Of the total, enterprises have issued more than VND2 trillion (US$126.6 million), most of them are big corporations such as PetroVietnam with issuance of VND300 billion, Song Da Corp with VND200 billion, Electricity of Vietnam with VND200 billion and Vinashin with VND1 trillion.

 

The government bonds account for most of the country’s issue, representing VND60 trillion ($3.8 billion), of which the majority was invested in major infrastructure projects. The government has recently raised $750 million from the sale of sovereign bonds.

 

Cities and provinces, which have issued VND7 trillion (US$443 million), include Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and southern Dong Nai province, with Ho Chi Minh City alone making up VND5.3 trillion.

 

The Ministry of Finance revealed that several localities are planning to issue bonds.